Punjab: One dead as farmers clash with cops over detention of farm leaders

Sangrur’s Senior Superintendent of Police, Surendra Lamba, said the farmers wanted to block the Badbar toll plaza and Barnala Sangrur National Highway, but police force deployed at Longowal tried to stop them. The farmers, however, forcibly removed the barricades using tractor-trolleys and buses, the SSP said, some farmers rammed their vehicles into the barricades.

“An inspector narrowly escaped crushed by a tractor trolley and sustained injuries. However, Preetam Singh came under a tractor-trolley belonging to one of the protesters and sustained severe injuries. He died during treatment,” the SSP said, adding another farmer and some other police personnel sustained ijuries.

The police official said video footage is available in which the elderly farmer is seen coming under the rear tyres of the trolley even as his colleagues were asking the driver to stop. “Prima facie, the incident took place because of the irresponsible behaviour of a few tractor and bus drivers during the protest,” the SSP said, adding that some protesters hit policemen with their sticks as the protest turned violent. He claimed that the “police used the highest level of restraint” and that the situation was now peaceful.

Meanwhile, the farm unions blamed the police for Preetam Singh’s death.

Kirti Kisan Union leader Bhupinder Singh Longowal said, “Police vandalised the buses of farmers. We have video footage of policemen hitting the buses and breaking the window panes. They created a situation in which the farmer got pushed under the trolley”.

BKU (Ekta Azad) leader Namol Singh said echoed Bhupinder Singh. “Victim Preetam Singh and the injured farmers are from our union. We demand an FIR against the erring police officials. We will not cremate the body till action is taken against them,” Namol Singh added.

The farmers later launched a dharna outside the Longowal police station. “All the convoys (of protesting farmers) marching towards Chandigarh will now be coming to Longowal. Punjab Police’s atrocities on farmers show that they are working on the directions of the central government,” Namol added.

Earlier, 16 farmer unions, including eight from Punjab, four from Haryana, and one each from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, had given a call for the tractor march to Chandigarh seek flood relief for affected farmers. The farm leaders had also held meetings with the police officials in Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh on Saturday and Sunday, and one with Punjab Governor, who is also UT administrator, Banwari Lal Purohit.

“The meetings did not yield any result and farm union leaders returned to their respective houses on Sunday night. However, many were detained and several others put under house arrest in Punjab and Haryana,” said Baljinder Singh from Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC).

Those arrested in Punjab include Sarwan Singh Pandher, the convenor of the 16 farmer unions, Jaswinder Singh Longowal (BKU-Ekta Azad), Balwant Singh (BKU Bhermake), and Sukhwinder Singh Sabrahan (KMSC).
“District presidents, general secretaries, and state committee members of farmer unions have been arrested,”said Baljinder Singh.

In Haryana, farmer leader Mandeep Nathwan and three others were detained at Ratia and allegedly taken to the CIA police station in Fatehabad. Farmer leader from Karnal Jagdeep Singh Aulakh was allegedly put under to house arrest while Sanjeev Ror from Kurukshetra was detained. Aulakh alleged that Amarjeet Singh Mohri, from Ambala, was detained after being summoned by officials.

Harpal Singh Sangha, president, Azad Kisan Committee, said, “Punjab Police raided my house around 6:00 am without any warrant or court order and interrogated my wife and daughter to know my whereabouts”.
Baljinder Singh said following the arrests they started protesting near two dozen toll plazas across 16 districts in Punjab. “Simultaneously, many others had started marching towards Chandigarh on tractor-trolleys before being stopped in Longowal,” he said.

Meanwhile, farmers have been granted permission to protest in Mohali.
Aulakh said they have asked farmers to reach Shambhu toll plaza near Ambala at 8:30 am Tuesday. “The farmers from Haryana, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh will first gather in Mohali and then they will move towards Chandigarh,” Aulakh added.

Meanwhile, the Punjab unit of Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), which was not part of the protest, extended its support even as it warned the AAP government in state of “harsh consequences” if the “arrested farmers are not released unconditionally and responsible officials are not held accountable for the lathi charge”.

“The aggressive arrests of farmers by the Punjab government and the lathi charge on the convoy of farmers in the village of Longowal are clear manifestations of the state government’s oppressive policies,” said SKM in a statement.

“SKM will never accept these actions and will not back down. This action by the government is a result of the government’s stubbornness,” said Satnam Singh Sahni, general secretary, BKU (Doaba). The farmer unions are demanding a central flood relief package of Rs 50,000 crore for Punjab, and Rs 50,000 per acre compensation for flood-affected farmers, among others.

With ENS, Jalandhar, Chandigarh